Why I went: I studied abroad as an undergraduate, and
felt that going abroad again in a graduate program would enhance my
teaching.

Living abroad brings to life everything that you’re
teaching, so that when you’re standing in front of a class,
you have current, firsthand knowledge of the language, culture and
political panorama of a particular country.

I remember attending the famous festival of Santiago de
Compostela, which takes place in July. It’s a religious
festival. You see so many people there, including foreigners
who make the pilgrimage to see the shrine of St. James the
Great.

Other memories include listening to the University of Salamanca
La Tuna group. A tuna is a group of university students who
play guitar and sing serenades.

‘An eye of your face’ and other idioms: I
lived with a family in Salamanca, which is an invaluable
opportunity because you are totally immersed in the language and
culture.

Every language has idiomatic expressions. Until you are really
immersed, you cannot pick up the nuances, the double-entendres. For
example, we say in English that something will cost you "an arm and
a leg," but in Spanish, it’s "an eye of your face."

Returning to Spain: In Salamanca, I met another graduate
student from Buffalo. One or two summers later, we returned to
Spain and rented a car and we drove the entire Iberian Peninsula,
Spain and Portugal, for 30 days. We wanted to see everything.

Spain is a lifelong connection now. I have good friends in
Spain, and I used to take students there for summer travel. We
would go to Madrid, to Sevilla, Malaga, and yes, Salamanca, and
Toledo.

I still cook Spanish recipes. There’s a Spanish sausage
called chorizo, and, of course, paella, which I learned to make
mainly from a family I lived with in Madrid during postgraduate
studies.

What I’m doing now: I retired from teaching in 2010
after 30 years with the Horseheads Central School District.
Throughout my career and schooling, I was exposed to museums and
art history and different cultures. I now do my own drawing,
painting and digital work. For me, art is language, and language is
communication. Art is another way to communicate and connect.

Study Abroad

UB offers study abroad opportunities in 30 countries, along with
access to more than 550 other SUNY programs. Eleven percent of our
undergraduates study abroad — five times the national
average.

Find out more about how you can study abroad, whether
you’re an architect who would like to spend the summer in the
parks, cafés and museums of Barcelona, or an engineer who
would like to experience university life in France.